This week will be the last of the 20 Minute Club blog posts because I’ve decided to create an extra special “something” just for the 20 Minute Club–like an actual/virtual club! I hope to have it started by the new year.

In the meantime, just know I’ll be working furiously on a fun, cool way for you to connect with other busy, creative souls just like you who want their creativity to be as important as all the other parts of their lives.  And we’ll do it by supporting each others’ efforts to build a soul nourishing, mind-expanding creative momentum–20 Minutes at a time!

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This Week with the Timer

Over the past 6-7 months, I’ve been working on transitioning my digital collages from small to big.

Lots of trial. Lots of error.

My initial small glass pieces were created using an unusual transfer method that I loved, but knew would be impossible to do really big–although I did keep trying to emulate the end result.

Big time-waster.

Which I only realized when my husband finally said to me, (after another disappointing attempt) “I think it’s a mistake to try to make them be the same as the small ones–make a new thing.”

OH. Yes, of course.

And once I truly did let go of wanting my collages to be the same only bigger, a new solution presented itself–quite quickly, I may add.

(See how the universe is? It’s so cooperative when you’re willing to listen.)

And now, the big ones are what they are–30″ x 40″ and laminated onto brushed metal with a sheer matte finish. Yay, sheer matte finish! I’m excited.

This picture shows one of my pieces, Tepotzlan, hanging in a room. What do you think?

The Waiting

During this problem solving period, I didn’t want to make any more digital collages because I knew the final scale and output “substrate” would have a big impact on what I created–so how could I create when I didn’t know those things?

But now I DO know those things, so I decided it was time to get back in the swing.

I used my timer and the 20 Minute Technique to start a new digital collage and I’m really liking how it’s working out. In fact, I think it’s almost done…although you and I both know how that last 10% of any project can take the longest!

I’ll keep you posted.

Appreciation

Appreciating yourself is an important part of the 20 Minute Club because it helps you keep your creative momentum going.

Carving out the time to create is important of course, but it’s not enough. Getting (and eventually staying) on your own side is a critical factor for helping you take bigger risks with your work, get yourself out of a creative rut, or just enjoy the process more.

Taking the time to remember to appreciate yourself and all your efforts (big or small, creative or not) is a powerful way to make this happen.

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Here are my five this week:

1. I appreciate my willingness to grow.

2. I appreciate my willingness to do hard things.

3. I appreciate my willingness to learn the difference between giving something time to work and changing it for the better.

4. I appreciate my desire to change family patterns that don’t work for me.

5. I appreciate my love of creating.

Your Turn

What did you create this week? Did you use a timer? How’d it go? Making any gifts? Please leave a comment, I love hearing from you!

When your life is crammed full and you feel depleted by your job and obligations and then feel further depleted because you can’t imagine having the time to make anything, remember this quote:

“What art offers is space – a certain breathing room for the spirit.”  ~John Updike

Your art and creativity will create the space you need to feel rejuvenated and connected–the breathing room your spirit requires. The space you feel is currently not there.

When you feel ridiculously exhausted and depleted (if you’re anything like me) it’s usually because you’re letting the pressing demands of your job or other obligations consume your (supposed) down time as well.

Are you home from work but still thinking about that conflict with your colleague?

Are you worrying that you should really finish that report so you can email to everyone for the meeting next week?

Are you half watching TV but thinking you better wash the kids’ uniforms for the game on Friday and clean that kitchen?

It’s hard to let go of our endless to-dos. We don’t have on and off switches.

But you can give yourself a simple something even while feeling this way–your creativity–and it’s the best interrupter of this pattern of depletion for people like us.

So set aside a few minutes to work on something, or sit in your studio or craft room and ponder what you’ve started (even if it’s months ago), or settle down with a cup of tea and pour over a book of work by your favorite artist and your life will feel less….hijacked.

I promise.

Please join in and share your 20 Minute Experiences in the Comments–good/bad, it’s all fair game, because sharing your experiences about the process is a great way to figure things out and increase your creativity.

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My life as a juggler of many balls in the air has continued and my brain is on overload.

So this week, my holiday gift making 20 Minute Club minutes had to rely on the tried and true– something I knew I could do without any planning.

For me, that’s my Glitter Decoupage Ornaments! They are soothing to make; I can decoupage those babies in my sleep; and people always like them. It’s a winning combination.

If you like them too, you might want to order them now. (Buy 2 sets and get FREE shipping!)

There’s also still time to sign up for either of the next Telecrafting Teleseminars (on 11/16 or 12/5) and we’ll make some ornament gifts together.

Watch this killer how-to video and see for yourself how fast, easy and fun they are to make:

(If you’re reading this as an email, you probably can’t see the video.  Please visit the site and watch it there.)

Appreciation

Appreciating yourself is an important part of the 20 Minute Club because it helps you keep your creative momentum going.

Carving out the time to create is important of course, but it’s not enough. Getting (and eventually staying) on your own side is a critical factor for helping you take bigger risks with your work, get yourself out of a creative rut, or just enjoy the process more.

Taking the time to remember to appreciate yourself and all your efforts (big or small, creative or not) is a powerful way to make this happen.

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Here are my five this week:

1. I appreciate that I’m keep moving forward with certain projects, even with misgivings and doubt. The way out is through!

2. I appreciate that I keep learning-learning-learning.

3. I appreciate that I meditate. Or sit like I’m meditating.

4. I appreciate that I had a little meltdown this week. What can I say?

5. I appreciate that I left one of my collages out to ponder, even though I thought it sucked wasn’t working. A solution arrived quite suddenly because of that and now it’s done. Yay!

Your Turn

How was your creative week? Did you make or start any handmade holiday gifts? Yes? Not yet? Please share, I’d love to hear from you!

Because if you’re feeling stuck or it’s been a long time since you made anything, you probably aren’t going to suddenly “feel ready” anyway–and that’s okay.

Conversely, you might feel like you’re “in the mood” and have lots of cool ideas often–but not when it’s convenient to create.

And in those moments, you might also feel certain that later you’ll definitely create what’s in your head right now, because you feel so darn in-the-mood and ready right now, you can’t imagine not feeling in-the-mood and ready later.

But then later comes, and that “ready” feeling is gone and nothing gets made. And that can feel frustrating.

But this “feeling-ready-at-the-wrong-time” thing happens partly because it feels safe to be “ready” at those wrong times because, well, it’s the wrong time.

When you’re feeling stuck, the scared part of your brain (that wants to protect you) lets you feel “ready” in those oddball moments because it knows it’s safe to do that because nothing can actually happen right then.

So it keeps things safe by keeping things hypothetical. To make matters worse, it also likes to make sure that you think you’re “not in the mood” or are “too tired” when you do have time to create, so that things remain safe and hypothetical.

And to top it all off, it also makes sure that you love that cool, buzzy feeling you get when you’re in the mood or feel-ready-to create-but-can’t, in order to trick you into thinking that you must wait for that feeling again before you can get started.

See how your brain is? Such a slippery little she-devil! How do we outsmart that little vixen?

Mood/Schmood

The truth of the matter is that your mood really has nothing to do with your creativity.

I learned this when I was designing products for a living, Your job as a designer is to create day in and day out–no one cares what your mood is or how ready you feel.

(Except for the fact that everyone else in the company thinks the entire design department is moody and hypersensitive, which is usually true. )

But moody or not, they still expect you to meet deadlines, so you do.

And when you do, you learn that your creativity and your moods don’t really have much to do with each other.

This revelation is very liberating.

Because if you want to wedge some artmaking into your busy life, chances are high that you might not be in the mood when the available time actually arises.

Maybe it’s after work when you’re very tired (and not in the mood). Or maybe it’s before work when you’re very tired (and not in the mood) . You get my drift.

But here’s the secret–the thing that will put you in the mood to create is……creating.

So if you set your timer for 20 minutes in those “not ready” times and promise yourself you can stop as soon as it dings, you might find that your mood has actually shifted in that short space of time–and you’re actually feeling a little more energized and arty–more like your real self.

You know, the one that gets buried beneath the gigantic to-do list of your life.

Which is also why you don’t have to wait to be “in the mood” or “ready” to take your free Creative Breakthroughs Collage Tele-class.

It’s okay to come crashing in at the last second unsure if you have all the supplies that you need, filling your water container with one hand as you shove the headset plug into your phone at 7:30 and a half with the other with no idea how class is going to play out.

Because the rest of us are doing the same!

That’s why I have a nice guided meditation at the beginning of the call to help us transition from the crazy-busy-ness of our overstuffed routines and turn to the illogical, mysterious act of creating.

After that, the technique pulls you through and 90 minutes of creativity fly by.

Free

It’s simple structured actions like these that make it possible to build a creative momentum and start making art regularly.

And when you find out that you can change your mood simply by engaging in the activities that nourish your soul and make you feel connected to the world, well, then lookout!

You’re no longer at the mercy of those moods.

You realize your creativity can be unleashed anytime.

Now you’re a little bit…..dangerous…because you’re a lot more FREE.

And how cool is that?

Please join in and share your 20 Minute Experiences in the Comments–good/bad, it’s all fair game, because sharing your experiences about the process is a great way to figure things out and increase your creativity.

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Think

Last week, in the 20 Minute Club minutes, I suggested we all work on holiday gift projects each week–20 minutes at a time.

(I also listed lots of ideas to get your (and my) creative juices flowing in the gift making direction, so if you didn’t read it, you might want to go back there and do that now. )

I didn’t, however do any of that this week. How about you?

I did do a lot of THINKING about it, though, and I’d just like to say that that’s an important first step–which I forgot to mention.

The invisible steps in the creative process are important to acknowledge and something I always have to re-remember myself.

Thinking COUNTS my creative friend–yes, it does!

So for me this week, there was a lot of musing about earrings (who, what size, what beads do I already own?)…stamping and embossing (bookmarks, what shapes, who?) ….holiday card possibilities (Creative Breakthroughs Tele-class–that would be a fun ‘theme’ to see what might emerge)…..etc.

Rummage

If you were in the thinking stage too all week, then may I suggest that the next important step in this process is rummaging.

Set the timer and go through what you already own!

Empty those drawers, pull that big bag out from the back of the closet, or find that little stool so you can take that precarious, overstuffed unmarked box down from that high shelf without killing yourself, and rummage.

This may spark new ideas that you haven’t thought of yet, remind you of cool ideas you had before, or help you actually know for sure what you still need to buy in order to be ready to work on what you’ve decided to do.

And then, the next time you’re driving by your big box craft store, you can actually go in because you actually know what you need.

(Inevitably, you’ll go back for something else, but still, at least it won’t be three six times. )

Browse

Of course, browsing is also a handy thinking tool, so you might use your 20 minute club minutes and browse for inspiration.

This might be at the aforementioned big box craft supply store, but it also might be somewhere else where you love to window shop. For me, that’s often museum shops or a store like Anthropologie–especially when I want inspiration for jewelry making ideas.

So continue to think, rummage and browse, and get yourself ready to create–because the holidays have a built-in deadline!

(P.S. If you do need some supplies from a big box craft store, I generally get their coupons in my email weekly–if you don’t get them, just write to me and and I’ll send one to you.)

Appreciation

Appreciating yourself is an important part of the 20 Minute Club because it helps you keep your creative momentum going.

Carving out the time to create is important of course, but it’s not enough. Getting (and eventually staying) on your own side is a critical factor for helping you take bigger risks with your work, get yourself out of a creative rut, or just enjoy the process more.

Taking the time to remember to appreciate yourself and all your efforts (big or small, creative or not) is a powerful way to make this happen.

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This week, I was on the phone with a friend right before writing this section of my blog post, and I joked that coming up with 5 appreciations about myself each week sometimes takes me a while. And she said, “Oh, well let me help you!”

And then she rattled off 5 appreciations faster than you can say…Jack Robinson! (And why do people say Jack Robinson? No idea.)

So here are my five self-appreciations as dictated by a good friend.

(If you’ve been having a hard time appreciating yourself, maybe you can look at yourself through the eyes of a friend, or even better, ask a friend to remind you what to appreciate about yourself!)

Here Goes:

1. I appreciate that I have an excellent humor!

2. I appreciate that I’m perceptive.

3. I appreciate that I really follow a thought through–I have an idea, and I finish it.

4. I appreciate that I’m a good friend and I help my friends out.

5.  I appreciate that I’m dedicated–I keep writing these blog posts, for instance, because I believe in this 20 Minute process, even when I’m not sure how many of you that I’ve convinced about this.

Your Turn

Have you been considering making some holiday gifts this year? Are you thinking of using a timer to help yourself out? Are you remembering to  appreciate yourself? Please leave a comment, I’d love to hear from you!

And I was talking about it with a friend, who also has a lot of balls in the air, and we were discussing the hard.

There’s things she does that I think are really hard, and there’s things I do that she thinks are really hard, but neither of us think that’s the problem.

“You know,” I said, “it’s not the doing that’s hard, it’s the wanting that’s wearing me out.”

“Yes,” she said. “I know exactly what you mean.”

The Wanting

Wanting to be good. Wanting things I’m working on to work out.

Sticking my neck out and wanting it to be worth it.

It’s an energy suck. And it doesn’t improve your doing in the least. In fact, it’s a lot like worrying in that respect.

It robs us of the here and now, which is really all we’ve got.

The Pleasure

This morning, I woke up thinking about sewing. Because sewing soothes me.

It’s a physical doing that grounded and concrete and I build a three dimension thing out of flat materials. I love that.

It’s a simple pleasure for me. It makes me feel connected to life.

And it’s a break from all my balls-in-the-air.

Receiving

You probably have a lot of balls in the air too.

Juggling like crazy. Wanting things to happen this way, worrying if things happen that way.

And it can feel like you don’t have the time or energy to fit your creativity into this juggling act.

But your creativity doesn’t have to be a part of the energy suck. It doesn’t have to be part of the wanting story.

It can be your refuge from all that.

If you let it.

You don’t have to have energy to create. Your creativity will give you energy.

It’s like a dog that’s always there, always willing and asking nothing.

It’s when we bring our wanting to our creativity that we tangle up this most essential part of ourselves with other confused ideas about achieving, identity, or lost time.

Let the act of creating feed you. Let your creativity nourish your soul and rejuvenate you.

Remember how you feel (or felt, if it’s been a while) when you’re immersed in your favorite act of creativity–I’m talking about the physical, making part of it–mixing the colors, or sewing the pieces, decoupaging the vase or feeling the charcoal on the paper….

and give yourself that again.

Remind yourself that this is who you are, this is the way you like to move through life here on planet Earth.

The way an athlete likes to run. The way a singer likes to sing. It’s you, being yourself, which is really all you’re ever supposed to be.

Good and bad–they have nothing to do with it.

The joyous, simple act of creating. It’s always there for you, no matter what.

Please join in and share your 20 Minute Experiences in the Comments–good/bad, it’s all fair game, because sharing your experiences about the process is a great way to figure things out and increase your creativity.

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Brain Wave!

It’s almost November. The holidays are right around the corner.

Wouldn’t a great use of the 20 Minute Technique be to use it to work on making some holiday cards or gifts?

Heck Yes!

You know you wish you made (at least some) of your gifts–and finding the time is always the big challenge. But this way, we can make it actually happen together–20 Minutes at a time.

So what do you say we all try to carve out 20 minutes 3x a week to create handmade bits for the holidays?

Are you in?

The trick is to keep it manageable and fun for yourself. Remember, small, handmade gestures go a long way–don’t let your brain turn this idea into such a gigantic project that you end up doing nothing.

With that in mind, I thought I’d create an do-able idea list to inspire your imagination–so after you read this, if you don’t have a timer yet, head over to local electronics store and get one already.

You’ll be amazed at what you can get done–20 minutes at a time!

Handmade Holidays Idea List

• Stamp & Emboss
  • Still give books to those book lovers, but stamp & emboss them each a special bookmark that’s tucked inside.
    • I wrote about the benefits of making small gifts or parts of gifts last holiday season, and I think this is a perfect example of adding a wonderful handmade touch to a larger gift.
    • I’ve got great links to online stamping resources in this post.
    • If you’ve never stamped and embossed, get great tips and watch my short how-to video here.
    • If you need supplies to get started stamping & embossing, click here or here.

• Handmade Gift Tags or Holiday Cards
  • For another easy, handmade touch, buy your gifts but make your own fabulous gift tags or greeting cards.
  • These could also be stamped and embossed–You could make classic “From/To” tags, or use ribbon and tie your tags around a wine bottle for a cute hostess gift, or send your 10 favorite people a handmade card.

• Decorate Holiday Gift Bags:
  • Rather than create wrapping paper, it’s simpler to decorate plain bags.
  • Just cut strips of decorative paper and/or use paper punches to create repeat patterns that you can glue onto plain gift bags. to make it feel festive, use lots and lots of curly ribbon around the handle.
  • I made this one on the right for a crafting store one season. (You can get often get pre-cut strips and shapes that make this super easy.)
  • Also, here’s a cute, simple Hanukkah gift pail example I also made just using stickers.

• Fabulous, Fast & Easy Decoupage Vase:
  • Get a cheap vase on sale at a big box discounter–look for an elegant, simple shape and don’t worry about the color or design on the surface–it’s even better if you hate it–and transform it with decoupage.
  • My Fast & Easy Decoupage Vase video shows you how. People really love this technique–it’s very do-able.
  • Or, use all the same techniques I show on the vase, but on a simple frame or box instead. Make a set if you’re feeling ambitious.

• Earrings:
  • Earrings are great gifts and perfect for the 20 Minute Club–they’re great gifts and you can make them while watching TV. It’s also a fun way to enjoy using a variety of exciting, special beads without breaking the bank because you don’t need that many.
  • If you want to get started beading or learn about some great online bead resources, click here, here, and here.

• Frame Your Artwork:
  • Use your coupon for a FREE trial of the Creative Breakthroughs Collage Tele-Class and give a work of art or three. I LOVE this idea and may do this myself with some of the collages I created that I’ve really liked.
  • Make it really special with a gallery mat and get an inexpensive metal or wood frame from a big box craft supplies store–they’re always having sales.
  • You’ll be surprised how much matting and framing will take your collage to the next level.
  • A Tele-class session could also be a great way to create the design for your holiday card this season–all you need is a color theme to give your image holiday feeling–blue and white, red and green, metallics, you name it!

• Make Pretty Ornaments!
  • My Glitter Decoupage Ornaments are pretty, inexpensive, and super fast and easy to make. Great teacher and co-worker gifts.
  • My Byzantine Baubles Ornament kit is my personal favorite and also great for the 20 minute technique because you’ll probably work on it in stages and it looks GORGEOUS when you’re done.
  • (Buy any 2 kits and the shipping is FREE.)

• Sew, knit or crochet a gift:
  • It probably helps if  you already know how to sew, knit or crochet, but making a gift can also be an incredible incentive to learn, so if you’ve always wanted to ___________(fill in the blank) maybe now is the time?
  • If threading your sewing machine often stops your sewing efforts, watch my clear how-to video.
  • If you’re looking for inspiring sewing projects for the holidays, I noticed Threads Magazine just released gift project issue.

I’ll keep adding to this list as I think of more ideas.

And if you’ve got some good, do-able ideas as well, please share them in the comments!

Just remember, your handmade gift ideas don’t have to be big. It’s important to keep things doable.

I’ll share my 20 Minute Club gift making efforts with you here each week this holiday season, and I’d really love it if you joined me so you can find yourself adding a wonderful handmade element to your holiday season.

Appreciation

Appreciating yourself is an important part of the 20 Minute Club because it helps you keep your creative momentum going.

Carving out the time to create is important of course, but it’s not enough. Getting (and eventually staying) on your own side is a critical factor for helping you take bigger risks with your work, get yourself out of a creative rut, or just enjoy the process more.

Taking the time to remember to appreciate yourself and all your efforts (big or small, creative or not) is a powerful way to make this happen.

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Here are my five self-appreciations for this week:

1. I appreciate that I took a photo of my latest incarnation in the evolution of my digital collages because I was so struck by how seeing a photo of it hanging up in a room made me feel–so resolved finally–after 6 months of problem solving!

2. I appreciate how much my life in product design has taught me the patience to hang in there through difficult design problems. It took me ages to figure out how to offer my collages big and still have them look the way I wanted them to look, but I just kept putting one foot in front of the other, (often 20 minutes here and 20 minutes there, no lie.) until it worked itself out.

3. I appreciate a shift in my thinking this week where I’m no longer questioning whether things I’m trying are going to work, and instead, just working on making them work.

4. I appreciate that I nervously bought professional lights for my videos and photos a couple of  months ago. Owning them is really benefiting me and my projects now, even though I’m still a novice. The right tools help!

5. I appreciate that I’m getting better and better and not letting the quest for perfect get in the way of the good. It’s very helpful. I hope I keep it up.

Your Turn

What do you think? Are you up for creating gifts using your timer and the 20 Minute Technique? Or have you already started on some holiday projects? Please share your thoughts in the comments, I’d love to hear from you!

(If you subscribe and haven’t received your coupon, just fill out that box in the top of the right hand sidebar of my site (underneath my picture) and you’ll get one!)

Yay, so excited.

And then a friend who hasn’t made work in a long time, but went to art school back in the day called me up. “I got that free trial offer yesterday and I panicked….and then I closed my email as fast as I could.”

“Oh my.” I said. “Did you watch the video?”

“No,” she said,  “I was too freaked out.”

OH!

Yes, Of course. So excited by my launch, I forgot to talk about the best part of this tele-class because I say it in the video.

But if you panicked and didn’t see the video, then you don’t know.

And that best thing is that it’s SAFE, SAFE, SAFE!

Not a Test

If you haven’t made anything in a long time, perhaps you’re reading this blog to get yourself warmed up to the idea.

This is an important, legitimate step in the process of getting unstuck.

But then suddenly, this free trial pops up out of nowhere and maybe you suddenly feel… PRESSURE. As if I’m saying, “Now, you have to make something–ready or not!”

Or you might feel afraid because you’re worried that if you take the class and make something “terrible,” it’ll prove that those cherished beliefs you hold about yourself–that you’re creative and artistic–aren’t true. That you’re not the creative artistic soul you feel like you are.

And that somehow, if this happens, you’ll be forced to let that go. And you don’t want to.

Of course you don’t. Because you ARE a creative artistic soul with plenty of art inside you.

The part of you that doesn’t want to let that go is the smart part that knows the truth of who you are.

The part of you that thinks you’ll have to let go of this essential part of who you are if you make something “bad” is the harsh, critical, societal, inner critic ego part that twists your creativity into a big knot and turns it into a pressured test.

Strangely, it does this to protect you–by stopping you from starting.

Sigh.

But this freaked out inner critic is deeply misinformed.

Attention: Mean Inner Critic Secretly Trying to Protect You by Keeping You Paralyzed:

Under NO circumstances must you surrender this essential definition of who you are. No matter what you make or don’t make. No matter how rusty you are, no matter how long it’s been, no matter how “bad” something might be that you create.

Triple Safe!

In the meantime, you might still be feeling pretty vulnerable. That’s totally normal.

It can take a while to undo our unhelpful beliefs, because, like everyone else, they like existing and do everything they can to maintain their status quo.

Which is why my favorite part of the Creative Breakthroughs Collage Tele-class is that it’s safe.

You not only get to be supported by being in a class, and feel less isolated by creating with other artistic people, but you also have COMPLETE PRIVACY at the same time because we’re on the phone.

Yes!

Not having to try in front of other people can be a huge relief because you can take risks without feeling exposed.

It’s hard to feel exposed if you’re feeling super vulnerable.

That’s why I designed this as a tele-class. Because I know those terrible fears of exposure. Of feeling rusty. I know that yuck.

And I wanted to create a class that could work around that problem–to help you feel supported, freed up, and safe to create. To provide a time to play and experiment.

Will you make something you love? I don’t know. Sometimes I do, and sometimes I don’t.

I just know that when I don’t, it doesn’t mean I don’t deserve to create. No one makes me hand in my artist card.

And no one will make you hand in yours either.

It might be hard, but that’s okay, it’s a supportive atmosphere and the technique I use is designed to make the hard easier.

I must say, though, that mostly, this tele-class is just SO MUCH FUN!

So if you haven’t watched the video–watch it now and see what you think. If you like what you see, sign up to get your free coupon.

And if you already have your free coupon, sign up for the next class and let’s get this party started!

Please join in and share your 20 Minute Experiences in the Comments–good/bad, it’s all fair game, because sharing your experiences about the process is a great way to figure things out and increase your creativity.

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Stuck has a lot of nuance and can really sneak up on you.

There are the familiar stucks such as, “I’m stuck in a rut and need to try something new” or the “I’m stuck and can’t bring myself to make anything anymore.”

But there are lots of variations of stuck even when you’re productive.

Because each new curve along the winding path of a project is usually also a new challenge. And sometimes you just want to pull over and let the other cars pass.

I realized yesterday that this had happened to me. That a very large collage drawing I am supposedly “working on” had actually been started oh, several months ago now, and I hadn’t touched it since.

And even though I have it hanging up in my studio, it was starting to blend into the scenery and I wasn’t really benefiting from having it up anymore because I’d stopped “seeing” it.

The reason I had come to ignore it is because I was stuck on what to do next.

AND, I was kind of invested in getting it right. It feels important to me as a “piece” because it’s exploring an emotional/important topic for me and I care a lot about the end result.

So.

I cared about it A LOT, I didn’t know where I wanted to go with it, AND I was afraid of messing it up.

I looked at my timer and knew what I had to do.

20 Minutes

I set the timer, turned on some music, pulled up a chair and just sat and looked.

Looked with all my not-knowing. Not knowing what it needed. Not knowing what I wanted it to do. Not knowing if I could “resolve” it.

Not-knowing. Not-knowing.

And then suddenly the top corner of the piece called to me and I stood up, looked for my charcoal and then grabbed a grey pastel instead and added some new marks. And then some more after that.

Gradually, my slow, relaxed “adding”gave me more information and I suddenly could see a little more clearly what I was trying to say/explore.

Interesting, I think, in response to these new glimpses. Who knew?

And I find that thought funny too because, it is my artwork after all, but still, I’m not always the driver.

“Who knew?”

I’m smiling at this point because the process always delivers if I’m willing to show up.

And then the timer went off. I worked a tiny bit longer and let myself stop.

Now my drawing/collage is in a new place. There’s still a lot of not-knowing, but it’s new not-knowing and that feels good.

Because I’m engaged with my piece again and seeing the process of trying to create it to completion as a gift to myself rather than as a test I need to pass.

Ahh. Always such a relief to make that shift.

The 20 Minute Technique really does help you get through the hard.

Appreciation

Appreciating yourself is an important part of the 20 Minute Club because it helps you keep your creative momentum going.

Carving out the time to create is important of course, but it’s not enough. Getting (and eventually staying) on your own side is a critical factor for helping you take bigger risks with your work, get yourself out of a creative rut, or just enjoy the process more.

Taking the time to remember to appreciate yourself and all your efforts (big or small, creative or not) is a powerful way to make this happen.

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Here are my five self-appreciations for this week:

1. I appreciate that I finally got my video and free trial offer out into the world. Yay! I’m so excited.

2. I appreciate how much I’m learning by attending local networking events–even when I’m kind of uncomfortable or a little shy.

3. I appreciate that I took a badly needed break when I needed one, instead of waiting and making things worse.

4. I appreciate that I had a conversation that I thought would be hard, and it was easy.

5. I appreciate that I sneaked in exercise several times this week even when it felt like there was just “no time.”

Your Turn

How was your creative week? Good? Hard? Do you have a timer yet? Are you remembering to appreciate yourself–the little things as well as the big? Please leave a comment, I love hearing from you!

Watch my short video where I explain all about it:

(if you’re receiving this in your email and you can’t see the video, click on this link: http://makegreatstuff.com/free-trial/)

Yay, FREE!

How Do Current Subscribers Get the Coupon?

If you already subscribe to my blog, thank you!

However, I’d love for you to re-subscribe because I’m using a different service that behaves better, lets me put the title of the post into the email subject line (so you can tell before you open it if it’s probably something that interests you), and sends prettier emails.

And if you do, you’ll get a coupon for a FREE trial of the Creative Breakthroughs Collage Tele-class.

This class is a great way to get unstuck, work around your self–censorship, and make time for your creativity every week.

And if you’ve already taken a Creative Breakthroughs Collage Tele-class, you still completely qualify for a FREE coupon–just  re-subscribe and it should arrive in your email shortly.

(You’re doing me a huge favor by switching subscription services, so I’m happy for you to have a free coupon.)

Please Share

I’d be honored if you’d share this offer with everyone you think might benefit so they can get back to their creative selves as well.

Tweet it, put the link in your FB profile, or email it to friends and family.

Here’s the link that has the video and explains all about it: http://makegreatstuff.com/free-trial/

Thank you, I really appreciate your willingness to spread the creative love.

I hope to “see” you on a call soon, and I really look forward to making art together!

Big hugs, Sarah